NHL All-Star Game predictions: Line combos we want to see, team champ picks
After a humorous All-Star player draft on Thursday and a thrilling night of All-Star skills on Friday, it’s time for the final event of 2024 NHL All-Star Weekend: the game(s)!
It’s a simple format: two semifinals of 3-on-3 hockey, followed by the winners of those games squaring off in the final. First up will be Team MacKinnon vs. Team McDavid at 3 p.m. ET, then Team Hughes vs. Team Matthews at 4 p.m. ET, followed by the championship game at 5 p.m. ET. All three games will be broadcast on ABC, and simulcast on ESPN+.
Before the games begin, which line combinations are we most excited to see? Which draft selections were the most questionable? And who will win it all?
What lineup trio are you most excited to see?
Ryan S. Clark, NHL reporter: Any combination from Team Hughes that features some mix of Quinn Hughes, Brock Boeser, Kyle Connor, J.T. Miller, Brady Tkachuk or Frank Vatrano. That amounts to six elite American players, and any one of those three who are on the ice further justifies what makes the United States look extremely promising in the buildup to the 2025 4 Nations tournament and the Olympics in 2026.
Victoria Matiash, NHL analyst: If tossed together, give me Nikita Kucherov‘s vision and playmaking abilities in harmony with Kyle Connor’s knack for putting the puck in the net, along with everything Brady Tkachuk does superbly, when others on Team Hughes are resting on the bench.
Arda Öcal, NHL broadcaster: Nathan MacKinnon–Sidney Crosby gives us the Nova Scotia connection, buddies who party at each other’s Stanley Cup celebrations back home over the summer, and two of the best players in history. Add a human highlight reel in Kirill Kaprizov — yeah, that’s a heck of a trio right there.
Kristen Shilton, NHL reporter: I’m feeling a David Pastrnak–Connor McDavid–Leon Draisaitl situation. It seemed like Team McDavid was the quieter group in Thursday’s draft, but their squad is sneaky good. And given the history between Draisaitl and Pastrnak that has never (until now) translated into them being able to play together in an event of this magnitude — I think it would be pretty cool to see.
Greg Wyshynski, NHL reporter: You’ve got to give the people what they want. And by “people” I mean all those Leafs lovers in the arena who want to see their guys put on a show on home. Toss Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander and Morgan Rielly‘s name in a hat, pull out a trio and watch them deliver a (glorified exhibition game overtime) championship to the Centre of the Hockey Universe.
What was the most questionable draft selection?
Clark: Sam Reinhart going in the fifth round to Team McDavid. For starters, they didn’t need more goals. They have the three players — McDavid, Draisaitl and Pastrnak — who finished first, second and third in points last season.
But beyond that, an argument can be made Reinhart should have gone higher. A perennial 20-goal scorer, he has already achieved a third straight 30-goal season and is on pace to finish with more than 60; he sits second in the goal-scoring race right now, with 37. We suppose a 27.6% shooting percentage helps.
Matiash: I’m not suggesting Tom Wilson doesn’t bring his own brand of panache to any roster, in any form of competition, but I’m also probably not picking the Capitals forward before Reinhart or Filip Forsberg or Vincent Trocheck, as Team MacKinnon did Thursday evening.
Öcal: Too much of the captains sticking to their NHL teammates for me overall. I get it, you want to play with your boys, but I would have loved some mix-and-match — we didn’t even get a trade! In terms of one specific selection, it was Alexandar Georgiev to Team MacKinnon. I would have loved the drama of seeing him selected by another team, then MacKinnon, Cale Makar and Tate McRae having to orchestrate a trade.
Shilton: Vincent Trocheck landing in the bottom four was crazy to me. He’s a point-per-game guy this season! And while all four teams had selected scoring talent to that stage of the night, it still felt like Trocheck should have been off the board well before Dave Keon came out and handed him his secret envelope. I’m looking at him to have a big game on Saturday just to show the other captains how badly they whiffed.
Wyshynski: I still think defense wins championships, so I still think that the right goaltenders can win the All-Star Game tournament. To the other three teams that allowed the squad with Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl to also have Connor Hellebuyck and Sergei Bobrovsky: What were you thinking?
Which team wins the championship?
Clark: Let’s go with Team MacKinnon. They have several players who can score and create for others. Having a goaltending tandem of Georgiev and Jeremy Swayman also helps. Yet the detail that could prove the most pivotal is that they have a number of players with two-way ability, which might give them an advantage in those late-game situations, trying to hold a lead.
Matiash: Team McDavid includes the best skater in the world, arguably the top goaltender in the game in Connor Hellebuyck, a Boston winger who could find himself an eventual Hart Trophy nominee, the player with the second-most goals to date, and one of the better two-way forwards in Boone Jenner (an underrated asset, in my opinion). Oh, and Leon Draisaitl. If Team Matthews doesn’t derive too much extra oomph from playing in front of the hometown crowd, I like this squad’s chances.
Öcal: Team Leafs … err, Matthews got the job done in front of the home crowd at the draft Thursday, and I say the good vibes continue Saturday. With the teams built how they are, we could hear the most booing we’ve heard ever at an All-Star Game. Team Matthews vs. Team Hughes in the opening round … Leafs vs. Canucks … Team Hughes will definitely be playing the role of the heel in Toronto for that one.
Shilton: I’ll also take Team Matthews. They’re got familiarity (with all four Maple Leafs together), their goaltenders (Jake Oettinger and Igor Shesterkin) are incredible, and they’ll just be having a lot of fun — which can translate into success! Plus, you know the hometown crowd will have their backs. Matthews’ crew might run away with this thing.
Wyshynski: The Can-Am Connection on Team Hughes. We have a team with the core five players from the first-place Vancouver Canucks along with American heroes Brady Tkachuk, Kyle Connor and general manager Jack Hughes. Oh, and some guy named Nikita Kucherov who’s leading the NHL in scoring at the break.
The 150th running of the Preakness won’t have the fanfare of previous years.
There will be no Triple Crown on the line and no rematch of the 1-2 finishers in the Kentucky Derby after trainer Bill Mott elected to point Sovereignty toward the Belmont and bypass the Preakness.
Just three horses who ran in the Kentucky Derby will run in the Preakness on Saturday — Journalism, who finished second to Sovereignty, American Promise (16th) and Sandman (seventh). Nine horses will enter the race, including several newcomers to the Triple Crown trail.
Top storylines
While a Kentucky Derby winner skipping the Preakness is a rarity over the history of the race, it’s become more common in recent years. Country House, who won the 2019 Kentucky Derby after Maximum Security was disqualified, was not entered into the race by Mott due to a cough. Other ailments ended his career early and he never raced again.
Rich Strike was not entered in the 2022 Preakness and neither was 2021 winner Mandaloun, who was not declared the official winner of the Kentucky Derby until Medina Spirit was officially disqualified after failing a postrace drug test.
The modern order of the Triple Crown races, with the Kentucky Derby first and the Belmont last, was established permanently in 1932, with some exceptions. Notable Kentucky Derby winners who skipped the second leg are: Grindstone (1996, career-ending injury), Spend a Buck (1985), Gato Del Sol (1982), Tomy Lee (1959), Swaps (1955), Determine (1954), Hill Gail (1952), Count Turf (1951) and Lawrin (1938).
This will be the final Preakness run at Pimlico for several years, as the 155-year-old track is set to undergo renovations for the next several years, including the replacement of the current grandstand for a smaller version. The Preakness will move to Laurel Park until renovations are complete.
Betting the Preakness
by Katherine Terrell
What’s the big draw now that the Kentucky Derby winner is out of the race? Journalism, who went off as the betting favorite in the race, gets a chance for redemption.
While putting Journalism on top of our Kentucky Derby bets didn’t quite pan out, he’s certainly going to be a worthy, and heavy, favorite in this race. Don’t take his second-place finish as a knock on his talent — he’s the most accomplished horse in this field.
What about Sandman, who drew significant attention in the Kentucky Derby due to his name? Sandman was named after the Metallica Song “Enter Sandman,” and the band recently posted a video cheering him on ahead of the Preakness.
Sandman’s trainer Mark Casse said the horse had tender feet going into his last race, causing him to sport glue-on shoes, but he has since been switched back to normal horseshoes. Sandman is a closer, meaning he would need a fast pace up front to be able to pass tiring horses and win this race.
Some of the more intriguing newcomers are Goal Oriented, trained by Bob Baffert and Steve Asmussen trainee Clever Again. Both are lightly raced, and bettors who are looking for better odds than Journalism provides might hope one of these two horses takes a step forward.
That’s the same situation as Gosger, who is 20-1 on the morning line but recently won the Grade III Lexington Stakes. He will also have to take a step forward or hope Journalism runs poorly off two weeks rest.
Journalism can sit back off the pace and hope the leaders get into a speed duel, a possibility with a lot of speed in the race. Either way, he’ll be a tough favorite to bet.
About the above chart: A Beyer number is a ratings system for speed during races. Some think horses need at least one race where they run a 95 Beyer number or over to be competitive in the Derby. Many of these horses have races where they’ve run over a 100 Beyer number or better.
The logical bet: Journalism to win (8-5) but will require a large bet to get a decent return.
The slightly better odds bet: Clever Again to win (5-1)
Two suggested bets:
-
Exacta box: Journalism/Clever Again
-
Trifecta: Journalism over Clever Again over River Thames, Gosger.
Best plays
by Anita Marks
No. 2 Journalism (8-5) is favored and rightfully so. He ran a great race in the Derby, but Sovereignty was just the better horse that day. With such a small field (nine horses), along with his pedigree, Journalism should dominate.
Other horses I fancy in the Preakness:
Clever Again (5-1) is a unique animal with a lot of talent. I believe he is the second-best horse in the race. Son of American Pharaoh — who won the Triple Crown — and trained by Steve Asmussen, an excellent trainer. He is super fast, is in great form and is training well.
Goal Oriented (6-1): A Bob Baffert horse. and will have one of the best jockeys on his back in Flavien Prat. He has the speed to come out of the No. 1 post and will be sent hard. Son of Not This Time and was the winner of a 1 1/16-mile race on the Kentucky Derby undercard. This will be his third race.
Preakness Plays:
-
To win or place: Clever Again
-
Exacta box: Goal Oriented, Journalism, Clever Again
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports1 year agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports2 years agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike
-
Business3 years agoBank of England’s extraordinary response to government policy is almost unthinkable | Ed Conway